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<br />Comments to SWSI, November 3, 2003, by John Wiener <br /> <br />6 <br /> <br />where small acreages are not being operated for profit or at scales sufficient to support <br />investment in higher technology, as well as the chance for increased risks from and to ditches, <br />especially where thoughtless zoning and development put investments in dangerous locations. <br /> <br />In a perfect world, ditches heading in this direction should be offered various easements, <br />incentives and opportunities to provide public benefits from such water management and habitat <br />support, designed to provide those benefits with appropriate access to the public as well as the <br />new neighbors. (And, urban developers and officials would reap the benefits of ditches instead of <br />encroaching on them, injuring rights of way, creating hazards, and generally turning an asset into <br />a liability while injuring the providers...) <br /> <br />Urban amenity values and the agricultural legacy <br /> <br />In almost aU of Colorado's urban areas, important quality of life benefits derive from the beneficial <br />externality provided by conveyance losses from ditches and canals, and in many urban and <br />suburban areas, there are also important benefits from uses of the rights of way for trails and <br />other access. Denver's Highline Canal is a premier amenity, as shown on the city's website, and <br />the State has published a series of maps of trails as well. The ditch companies are, for most of <br />the population of the West on a daily basis, "the people who brought you trees and birds." <br /> <br />There are two ways to consider the value of the amenities provided by the ditches and their <br />support of vegetatiDn and wildlife. First, real estate valuation reflects the added charms of being <br />near these amenities; economists have studied the differences between similar properties, using <br />large samples, to sort out different sources of value, and amenities are not trivial. The National <br />Association of Home Builders, for example, sponsored a study on the value of trails (reported by <br />the Rails to Trails Conservancy; the NAHB publication is costly, but a distillation can be seen at <br />http://www.nahb.org/generic.aspx?genericContentlD=S40). A local check could be performed by <br />Simply asking realtors for their experience and advice, or perhaps interview some residents about <br />what they like and don't like. <br /> <br />The second approach to valuation might be considering the cost of purchasing the same services <br />and qualities. How much would it cost to provide treated water and a distribution system for the <br />support of the vegetation along ditches if the ditch itself were "turned off"? Would the neighbors <br />be willing to provide that watering, and are there neighbors along the ditch? If the trees and <br />shrubs were lost, what would it cost to replace them, or to establish similarly supportive bird and <br />wildlife habitat? (Raccoon-haters may think this would be a foolish question, but bird-lovers may <br />not.) And, what would be the cost (let alone probability) of acquiring a corridor like that provided <br />by the ditch, as a new right of way? <br /> <br />The literature supports claims about the importance of amenities and the sense of place (e.g. <br />Daniels, T.L., J.W. Keller, and M.B. Lapping, 1995, The Small Town Planning Handbook, 2d Ed., <br />Chicago: American Planning Association, Chaps. 10, 12 and 21; and see Chaps. 3, 4 and16 in <br />Arendt, R. et aI., Rural bv Design: Maintaining Small Town Character, 1994, Chicago: American <br />Planning Association; for metropolitan areas, see Hoch, C.J., L.C. Dalton and F.S. So, 2000, The <br />Practice of Local Government PlanninQ, 3rd Ed. Washington, D.C.: International City/County <br />Management Association, Chaps. 5 and 8.; and see references in comment above). <br /> <br />Agricultural efficiency and environmental values <br />Agricultural Efficiency and unintended uses of water: this is relevant to ## 1 ,2,S,6,7,8, and 9! <br /> <br />Outside of urban areas, conveyance losses, seepage and irrigation inefficiencies create <br />significant added wildlife and vegetation benefits in rural landscapes enlivened by the water <br />distribution system. The Front Range as a whole, Including the Plains (and much of the West <br />